The fact that The Canon is still seen as such is habit, and one we enforce precisely because we're unwilling to admit the extent to which it was shaped by the pressures of racism, sexism, classism, xenophobia, Anglocentrism, homophobia, ableism - all that jazz.
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Jumping back on to add that, in listing all the things which impacted who was allowed to join The Canon (or even write at all) prior to a certain date, we need to be conscious that the bias within publishing hasn't magically gone away. For all that diversity is flourishing -
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- it's thanks to active pushback and monumental acts of will, most often by marginalised creators, who expend their time and energy making space for themselves and their peers within an industry that often, still, tries to push them out.
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(For an example of such bias, we need look no further than Cluess saying a WOC doesn't deserve her job as a teacher for daring to question The Canon and probe it for racism - a statement she then tries to gloss over by claiming Calm And Rational Concern For Literature
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Like far too many industries, publishing is very one step forward, two steps back when it comes to diversifying, which is why we can't rest on the non-existent laurels of Modern Publishing Is Fixed Now You Guys, Bias Only Happened In Ye Olden Dayes.
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